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No one seems to be bothered. Everyone continues their flower work.

Instructor Araya Thaithieng speaks loudly; like he's been angry for ages. However, his students say he is very friendly and has a kind heart.

"He tells us not to be serious and keep smiling and talking. This will make our arrangements pretty," says workshop participant Sunit Chongvatana.

She's in her second session of a five-day workshop.

"Students are worried on the first day that they won't be able to do it properly. But the instructor keeps encouraging us and tries to create a fun and relaxed atmosphere," Sunit says.

The workshop does not focus on theory and there are no books or worksheets.

However, the 25 to 30 students in each workshop will learn everything from picking flowers to calculating the cost for opening a florist as well as making souvenir crafts.

"He throws us all sorts of knowledge and techniques related to the flowers," says Porntip Chitreechur, a business control manager at Sony.

In each workshop Araya teaches four different types of arrangement. He always introduces his students to different styles and ideas, she says.

Porntip took four flower arrangement workshops in her first year and has been assisting Ataya on weekends for more than two years.

Araya is a fulltime instructor at Rajamangala University of Technology at Chotiwet. He teaches craft workshops at the memorial park and writes books on crafts and flower arrangement.

"His ideas are different every time. Even in today's class ... it's all new to me," Porntip says.

Workshops are every Sunday from 9am to 3pm for five consecutive weeks about three to four times a year. Cost is Bt2,000, including materials.

"It's beyond what I expected," says Sunit, a production manager at machinery company Sarakorn.

"For this amount for five whole-day workshops, it's inexpensive. The workroom is air conditioned, the flowers and materials are prepared and the atmosphere is nice and the instructor is experienced."

St Francis Xavier School grade11 student (English programme) Natcha Kamolkol says there may be too many people in the class but the instructors and assistants always pay attention to student needs. "In all, it's not bad," she says.

Princess Mother Memorial Park is at Somdet Chao Phya Soi 3, Khlong San. It offers a variety of workshops from cooking to craft and yoga.

The next flower arrangement workshop is from November to December. Call 02 437 7799, 02 439 0902 or log on to www.theprincessmothermemorialpark.org.

Story by Rojana Manowalailao

Photo by Anant Chantarasut

The Nation